Online map services have been available for many years, offering functionality including displaying graphical maps (whether image-, line-, or vector-based maps), locating locations by address, and providing travel directions (often illustrated on the above graphical maps). Some map services also maintain a database of geographical entities (such as restaurants, stores, and tourist destinations), their respective locations, and other information regarding these points of interest. Searches may be run against this database to identify particular points of interest for a user. For example, a user of a map service may submit a text-based search query for “thai restaurant, el cerrito, ca”, resulting in a list of restaurants serving Thai food in or about El Cerrito, Calif., which may also be listed and shown on a graphical map display.
Additionally, some online map services have included a mechanism for user-submitted reviews of geographical entities. Information provided in such reviews, whether in the form of a “star” rating or textual data, is useful for search and ranking of geographical entities. However, few users take time to submit ratings or comments about geographical entities, which limits the benefits obtained from user-submitted information, such as enhanced search quality or simply providing more information for consumption by users.